Sunday 1:15 - 2:05 PM
Magnolia B
A Study of Collaboration in Second Language Learning Assessment
Christine Chai-Nelson, Mark Evan Nelson
Kanda University of International Studies, Japan
According to predominant thinking and practice, most language teachers
would likely agree that an effective approach should fundamentally involve
interaction, interdependence and negotiation of meaning on the part of
learners. Therefore, logically, the testing components of a CLT curriculum
might also benefit from these same communicative principles. Yet,
testing has been largely neglected in the development of the communicative
language teaching paradigm. In response to this apparent need, under the
auspices of the Research Institute for Language Studies and Language Education
of Kanda University of International Studies, we have undertaken a two-year
project to explore how collaborative testing may impact the language acquisition
process of first- and second-year Japanese university students. In our
presentation we intend to outline the rationale, objectives and structure
of our research; show results of the in-progress analysis of the data we
will have collected- and make preliminary projections for the outcome of
the project.
Christine Chai-Nelson received her MA in TESOL from San Francisco
State University. As a second-generation Korean-American and having been
surrounded by family members who have been and still are ESL/EFL
learners, she has always been sensitive to and interested in the
process of second language acquisition. Her teaching experiences include
working in adult literacy programs at San Francisco City College and at
a local non-profit organization; as well as working for an intensive, pre-academic
language school, the American Language Institute, at San Francisco State
University. She is currently employed at Kanda University of International
Studies in Japan.
Mark Evan Nelson received his MA in TESOL
from San Francisco State University. He has taught both in the United States
and abroad and is currently in his second year of teaching at the Kanda
University of International Studies in Chiba, Japan. A native New Yorker,
he received his undergraduate training in painting and art education from
Pratt Institute. This admixture of visual arts and language teaching principles
has produced a keen interest in the communicative properties of visual
imagery and their application to language learning and teaching. |